The present invention relates to the field of plumbing, and more particularly to shower assemblies intended primarily for domestic use.
Water conservation, long a matter of interest in other parts of the world, has become a topic of considerable concern on the North American Continent, and especially in the arid parts of the United States. Residents of several states have recently been asked to conserve by reducing the amount of water they use in their homes and businesses. In some areas which are particularly hard-hit by a chronic lack of precipitation, water has been rationed. Some experts forecast that water conservation will be a fact of life in dry regions of the country for the foreseeable future.
In response to the demand for water conservation, a number of devices for reducing domestic water usage by cutting down the amount of water used during a shower have reached the market. Some of these take the form of flow restrictors adapted for insertion into the water lines or shower valves. Others provide flow-limiting shower heads of various designs intended to take the place of existing inefficient, wasteful spray heads.
Neither type of device has found widespread acceptance for either commercial or private residential applications. There are two principal reasons: One is that most of the prior art inserts and replacement shower heads can easily be removed by impatient users who are more interested in getting a quick shower than in conserving water. This is a particular problem in the hotel and rental property industries because the ultimate user is generally not the person primarily responsible for regulating the water usage.
The second reason the currently available flow-regulating devices are unsatisfactory is that they do nothing to prevent the waste that occurs when the shower is turned on and while the water is coming to the desired temperature. This is a significant factor from the standpoint of the individual homeowner as well as the manager of multiple commercial units.
An object of my invention is to provide a temperature controlled water conserving shower assembly which can be readily and securely installed in place of an existing shower head.
Another object is to provide such a shower assembly in which the flow of water can be reliably adjusted with a tamper-proof mechanism to restrict the flow rate and control the delivery of water at a predetermined temperature.
Still another object is to provide an assembly of the type described in which the waste of water during the initial temperature adjustment period is minimized.
In satisfying these objects, my invention represents a unique improvement in the field of shower design and satisfies the long felt needs of the plumbing supplier, hotelier, landlord, and homeowner.